Naruto Uzumaki (うずまきナルト, Uzumaki Naruto) is a shinobi of Konohagakure. He became the jinchūriki of the Nine-Tails on the day of his birth — a fate that caused him to be shunned by most of Konoha throughout his childhood. After joining Team Kakashi, Naruto worked hard to gain the village's acknowledgement all the while chasing his dream to become Hokage. In the following years, through many hardships and ordeals, he became a capable ninja regarded as a hero both by the villagers, and soon after, the rest of the world, becoming known as the Hero of the Hidden Leaf (木ノ葉隠れの英雄, Konohagakure no Eiyū, Literally meaning: Hero of the Hidden Tree Leaves). He soon proved to be one of the main factors in winning the Fourth Shinobi World War, leading him to achieve his dream and become the village's Seventh Hokage (七代目火影, Nanadaime Hokage, Literally meaning: Seventh Fire Shadow).

Contents

Background

Early Life

Naruto was born on the night of October 10th to Minato Namikaze (the Fourth Hokage) and Kushina Uzumaki (the second jinchūriki of the Nine-Tails). He was named after the protagonist of Jiraiya's first book, which made the Sannin his godfather. The Third Hokage made special arrangements for Minato to preserve Kushina's seal containing the Nine-Tails while she gave birth to Naruto in a remote location, escorted by midwives and Anbu. A masked man, Tobi, tracked down their location, however, killed the midwives and Anbu, and captured Naruto, forcing Minato to quickly rescue him and teleport him to a safe house.

With Minato gone, Tobi captured Kushina and released the Nine-Tails from her, using it to devastate Konoha. Minato saved Kushina and left Naruto in her care before he went to protect the village, eventually defeating Tobi and freeing the Nine-Tails from Tobi's control. Returning to Naruto and Kushina's location, Minato realised the only way to stop the Nine-Tails was to seal it within Naruto, believing that his son would someday need the fox's power to defeat Tobi when he returned. Since the Nine-Tails' chakra was too immense to seal into an infant, Minato sacrificed his soul to split the fox's chakra in half, sealing the Yin half within himself and the Yang half within Naruto. After telling Naruto how much they loved him, Minato and Kushina succumbed to their wounds from protecting their son from the Nine-Tails and passed away.

Orphaned, Naruto grew up not knowing who his parents were, receiving only his mother's surname, as Hiruzen wanted to protect Naruto from his father's enemies. Minato's dying wish that Naruto be regarded as a hero was honoured by the very few who could put aside their pain and losses caused by the disaster, while the majority of Konoha, however having no knowledge of the circumstances surround his birth, openly ostracised and resented Naruto for containing the beast that devastated the village and took many lives; some even viewed Naruto as the Nine-Tails itself. Soon, the Third Hokage forbade anyone from mentioning the Nine-Tails, hoping that the younger generation would not blindly hate Naruto as their parents did. However, Naruto's peers emulated their parents' hatred of him, despite not knowing why. This social isolation caused Naruto to crave acknowledgement, which he would gain by pulling pranks.

Naruto meets his future wife, Hinata.

On the day of his enrollment in the Ninja Academy - Naruto first met Hinata Hyūga, who was being picked on by three bullies. Despite not knowing her, Naruto immediately came to her defense, but he was outnumbered and knocked unconscious, and the bullies damaged his red scarf. When Naruto awoke, Hinata thanked him for helping her and returned his scarf to him, but he let her keep it. He was unaware the the girl's growing affections for him began from that moment onwards.

In the Academy, Naruto became a student of Iruka Umino, who acted as a surrogate older brother to keep him in line and help him work harder. Naruto also met his class-mate Sasuke Uchiha and tried to befriend him, since he was alone as well. Jealous of Sasuke's skills and popularity, however,he developed a one-sided rivalry in his pursuit to prove himself just as good as, if not better than, Sasuke, wishing that someday, Sasuke would accept him as an equal. Naruto also grew close with the owner of Ramen Ichiraku, Teuchi and his daughter Ayame, being welcomed as their favourite customer.

Personality

Naruto is characterised as boisterous, exuberant and unorthodox, quite similar to Hashirama Senju. He inherited his mother's verbal tic, as he ends his sentences with "Dattebayo!" (だってばよ!) when excited or frustrated. Though he responds best to competition and is not afraid to ask for assistance, Naruto is relatively naive, simple, and slow to understand principles or situations. He often requires an oversimplified analogy in order to grasp explanations, and can even forget some concepts that he himself noted earlier if he is too emotional. Naruto is aware of his faults, and admits he acts strong to mask his embarrassment and frustration about them. Despite his naivety, Naruto can be quite observant, picking up on things others miss and retaining information casually gathered through conversation.

Growing up as an orphan who suffered years of hatred and social isolation by Konoha's villagers has influenced Naruto's character in a number of ways: he is heedless to formality and social standings, addressing certain people with nicknames instead of honourifics; he has picky eating habits of ramen, his favourite food; he has a perverted side that manifests as uses of the Sexy Technique or attempts to peep into women's baths; he didn't understand the real meaning of "love" and believes that loving and/or being loved by someone and ramen are both the same. Despite his quirks and the criticism they earn him, Naruto is said to have a personality that draws people to him,inspiring friendship and loyalty through acts of genuine kindness that could change a person's world view. He is thus able to build meaningful relationships that he lacked in early life; the Sage of Six Paths believes Naruto's kindness is a special gift that allows him to save Kurama from its hatred. Naruto deeply cherishes these bonds and will go to great lengths to protect them, best seen with Sasuke after his defection from Konoha. Naruto's time at the Falls of Truth revealed that a part of him hated the villagers for ostracising him, only to admire him after he saved them during Pain's Assault. This allowed Kurama to manipulate Naruto's rage until he confronted it and learned to let it go, becoming greater than what he suffered.

Another of Naruto's prominent traits is his desire for acknowledgement; his pranks around the village were for people to notice, or at least scold, him. Therefore, he dreamed of one day becoming Konoha's Hokage, the epitome of acknowledgement and respect from everyone in the village. Knowing his dream is a long, arduous and seemingly impossible path, Naruto developed his own nindō of never going back on his word. This life-long philosophy serves as the cornerstone of Naruto's great self-confidence; he believes he can accomplish any goal with enough hard work and perseverance, no matter how big the obstacle is or how long it takes to complete it. This guides him in many aspects of life besides a battle, such as his promise to Sakura of bringing Sasuke back to Konoha. Over time, his goal to be Hokage grew from a desire for acknowledgement to a desire to help and protect the people close to him, which Tobi attributed to the Will of Fire. His nindō is reinforced by his understanding that shinobi were meant to endure through hardships. His belief in hard work and perseverance made him detest people who would use insincere shortcuts to achieve their goals, as he disqualified his son from the Chūnin Exams for using the banned and unfair Kote, and expressed disgust at Momoshiki and Kinshiki Ōtsutsuki for their reliance on harvesting from Chakra Fruits to lazily gain power.

After the death of his master Jiraiya, talking to his father Minato and listening to Nagato's tragic story, Naruto grew to understand the cycle of hatred and vowed to break it in order to bring real peace to the world. To that end, his participation in the Fourth Shinobi World War is not only to protect his friends, but also to bear and erase the world's hatred all by himself. After encountering a reincarnated Itachi Uchiha, however, Naruto realises that he cannot handle everything alone and that he must allow his friends to support and fight alongside him. As he does so in war's climax, his fighting spirit inspires the Allied Shinobi Forces to join him and keep fighting to end the war as well, ultimately becoming an example for many people to admire, follow, and believe in.

Naruto becomes shy around Hinata.

Naruto first met Hinata Hyūga when they were children, where his open kindness and courageous spirit earned him her admiration, which grew into love. On his part, Naruto remained largely oblivious to Hinata's feelings for him and even considered her "weird" because of her shyness around him. However, things change during the Chūnin Exams in Part I when they began to interact more and support each other, causing Naruto to like her as a friend. In Part II, as Hinata becomes willing to risk her life to protect Naruto, he in turn sees her as a strong person despite his speechlessness at her love confession. Naruto did grow to love Hinata subconsciously, but he was never able to consciously realise it because he kept "fighting" for Sakura, which was just another way for him to compete with Sasuke. During The Last: Naruto the Movie, Naruto finally recognises the love that Hinata has always had for him, causing him to become more bashful and protective of her, just as she was for him. Realising that she alone has always had faith in him and that she has always been there for him, he reciprocates her feelings and desires to be with her for the rest of his life.

As an adult, Naruto becomes wiser and more mature, though he retains some of his negligence for honourifics. Although he finally achieves his dream of becoming Hokage, its many tasks not only overwhelm Naruto at times, but often leave him unable to spend time with his family, particularly upsetting his son Boruto. He admits that part of this stems from not having grown up with a father himself, making it difficult for him to know how to interact properly with his own children, mostly with his son. Naruto is also more responsible in his duties as Hokage and as a father: he forbids use of the Kote in the Chūnin Exams as it diminishes a shinobi's true potential; he is disappointed by Boruto's cheating in the exams and even removes his forehead protector in front of the audience after lecturing him. Nevertheless, Naruto deeply loves his family, as he creates shadow clones to tend to them while he's busy, protects them in times of danger, spends time with them when he can, and expresses pride in his children's successes. He in fact adopts Hiruzen's philosophy that everyone in the village is his family, believing that true relationships are made up of love rather than blood relations.His refusal to give his son any special treatment due to their blood-relationships, along with the insistence that the boy professionally addresses him as "Seventh" or "Hokage" while in the office, is a testament of Naruto's lack of bias and prejudice.

Appearance

According to Jiraiya, Naruto strongly resembles his father: he has blond, spiky hair and blue eyes, while inheriting the shape of his mother's eyes and face. His trademark characteristic are the three whisker markings on his cheeks. During the Fourth Shinobi World War, Dan Katō initially mistook Naruto for Nawaki due to their stark resemblance. Naruto was rather short for his age during Part I, though he grew to be taller than Sakura in Part II. Naruto originally wore green goggles on his forehead, though he discards them upon becoming a genin.

In Part I, Naruto wore an orange and blue jacket with a white collar, a white swirl with a tassel on the left side, and a red Uzumaki crest on the back. He also wore orange pants with a shuriken holster on his right knee, blue sandals, and a blue forehead protector, given to him by Iruka after graduating from the Academy. In Part II, Naruto wears a more form fitting outfit after wearing out his original one while training with Jiraiya, with a T-shirt or mesh armour underneath. While retaining the swirls and orange pants, the blue pieces of his outfit changes to black: his forehead protector (which is now longer), sandals, and orange jacket, the black colour showing more prominence than the blue did originally. During his battle with Pain, Naruto briefly wore a short-sleeved red coat with a black flame pattern around the hem and carried a large scroll on his back.

Naruto loses his right arm after the Fourth Shinobi World War, though it is later replaced by a fully maneouverable prosthetic arm made of Hashirama Senju's cells, wrapped completely in bandages. In The Last: Naruto the Movie, Naruto grew taller again, cut his hair short and wore a black elastic forehead protector. Over his pants and sandals, he wears a black uniform jacket with an orange zipper and buttons on the waist and sleeves, which can be folded up at times. He has a red armband with an Uzumaki crest on his left arm. After becoming Hokage, Naruto dons a garment similar to his father's: a white cape that has a red flame pattern around the hem, is held together by a red rope, and has the kanji for "Seventh Hokage" (七代目火影, Nanadaime Hokage) written vertically down the back. Underneath this, he wears an orange sweatshirt with black stripes (reverse in Boruto: Naruto Next Generations), black pants and sandals. He occasionally wears the traditional Hokage headpiece, but has stopped wearing a forehead protector.

Abilities

Chakra and Physical Prowess

As an Uzumaki, and a reincarnation of Asura Ōtsutsuki, Naruto has massive reserves of strong chakra, estimated as being at least four times greater than Kakashi's, and described by Karin as "bright and warm." He initially struggled with controlling his chakra properly, which was offset by his large reserves. Naruto's control improved greatly over time: he could transfer his chakra to others, and perform one-handed hand seals. He later received chakra from all of the other tailed beasts, and Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki, which increased his reserves even further. Naruto's powerful life force grants him an extreme longevity, healing power, stamina, and vitality, and this allowed him to survive the extraction of a tailed beast for a while. These traits are all augmented after he receives a prosthetic forearm made from Hashirama's cells.

While naturally a short-range fighter, Naruto wasn't very adept at taijutsu in Part I, as he required unpredictable attacks to surprise combat experts like Kiba Inuzuka and Neji. He often utilised shadow clones or Kurama's chakra to engage and overwhelm his enemies in combat; with the former, he created techniques such as the Naruto Uzumaki Combo and its stronger versions.Although these tactics resume in Part II, Naruto becomes more adept at taijutsu due to Jiraiya's training. After his tutelage under Fukasaku, he was capable fending off a pair of skilled kenjustu users on his own. Two years after the war, Naruto's taijutsu improved to such an extent, that he could defeat dozens of opponents without requiring shadow clones or enhancements.

Naruto also learned how to counter genjutsu from Jiraiya, but had limited skill in using it. Once he had earned the cooperation of Kurama, his tailed beast partner, this would no longer be an issue.

Jinchūriki Transformations

As the jinchūriki of Kurama's Yang half, Naruto had access to a massive chakra reserve, which was at least a hundredfold greater than Kakashi's. Due to his Uzumaki lineage, and being Kurama's jinchūriki his entire life, Naruto's chakra had more effectively mixed with the fox's, which allowed him to perform several chakra-taxing techniques. While accessing Kurama's chakra, typically through sheer rage, enhanced Naruto's abilities, the fox's negative influence made Naruto more aggressive and feral. This gave him uncontrolled access to the Version 1 and Version 2 forms, and he would need Kurama's power to be suppressed through various methods to regain control. These drawbacks caused Naruto to rely on his own strength instead of Kurama's, until he proved capable of controlling it completely. By the time he became the jinchūriki of Kurama's Yin half, he could access his Version 1 form without the initial drawbacks.

Ninjutsu

In the Academy, the Sexy Technique was the only technique that Naruto could perform successfully, which had no practical use other than to shock his instructors. During his shinobi career, he learnt new ninjutsu from Jiraiya, able to summoning toads from Mount Myōboku to assist him in battle, and use them to crush enemies from above. He became skilled in shurikenjutsu, able to throw weapons quickly and with precision, barrage an enemy using shadow clones, or as Hokage, cross blades with Momoshiki Ōtsutsuki. Naruto's repertoire expanded to fūinjutsu upon receiving Gerotora near the start of the Fourth Shinobi World War.

Naruto could also sense chakra, but only through his enhanced modes. He could identify chakra signatures from vast distances in Sage Mode, detect negative emotions in Nine-Tails Chakra Mode, and empower his sensory abilities to the highest possible level in Six Paths Sage Mode, which allowed him to sense the invisible shadows of Limbo. In the anime, Jiraiya introduced Naruto to cooperation ninjutsu, where two or more people combine their techniques to create an even more powerful one. The collaboration techniques he performed with other individuals typically utilised his own elemental affinity, such as the Typhoon Water Vortex Technique with Yamato, the Wind Release: Toad Gun with Gamatatsu, and the Scorch Release: Halo Hurricane Jet Black Arrow Style Zero with Sasuke.

Shadow Clone Technique

Naruto using the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique.

Naruto's first trademark technique was the Shadow Clone Technique. In the Academy, Naruto was unable to perform most of the basic techniques taught, including a basic Clone Technique. However, when Iruka risked his life to save Naruto, he overcame this by performing the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique, effectively conquering his inability to create a clone. From that point on, Naruto's skill with the Shadow Clone Technique blossomed to great heights. As a ninja with unusually high chakra reserves, Naruto could use this technique, as well as its advanced version, to create hundreds of shadow clones and retain a decent amount of chakra in each one with relative ease. He could use them to outnumber or deceive his enemies in combat, manoeuvre himself in mid-air, transform into weapons, scout an area, or test an opponent's abilities. During his elemental-affinity training in Part II, Naruto learnt that the user of the Shadow Clone technique would receive all of the knowledge and experience that the shadow clones had gained once they had dispersed. This method allowed him to drastically speed up his training, as he could in effect gain years worth of experience in just days. By the time he became Hokage, Naruto's usage of this technique on mass-scale and prolonged-periods allowed him to constantly perform various simultaneous tasks throughout the village daily, although he does have a tendency to overexert himself, leaving him exhausted afterwards.

Rasengan

Naruto using the Rasengan.

Naruto's second trademark technique was the Rasengan, a one-handed technique created by his father. Due to his poor chakra control, Naruto often used a shadow clone to form the spherical shape while he provided the chakra. Over time, Naruto's improved skill allows him to produce larger versions of the Rasengan, perform it faster, and even have his shadow clones make their own Rasengan. During the Fourth Shinobi World War, he learned to use the Rasengan and its variants without the aid of any shadow clones or transformations, and could even form one in both hands simultaneously. He also increased the size of his standard Rasengan, making it noticeably larger. Naruto had also shown the ability to release the Rasengan as an energy wave, or as a projectile in the anime. Using senjutsu or Kurama's chakra, Naruto could create more powerful and elaborate variations of the Rasengan; using the latter, he even developed the Super Mini-Tailed Beast Ball, performing it in a similar manner to the Rasengan.

Nature Transformation

Naruto and his shadow clones create a Wind Release: Rasenshuriken.

Naruto's natural affinity is Wind Release, which he learned from Asuma Sarutobi to flow into his weapons to increase their offensive might. Using shadow clones, he was able to complete difficult task of adding his elemental nature to the Rasengan, something his father had not been able to complete before his death. One shadow clone helped form the Rasengan, while the other provided the Wind chakra, which produced the Wind Release: Rasengan and the Wind Release: Rasenshuriken. The latter, when used as a melee attack, inflicts cellular damage on both the enemy and Naruto. Two years after its creation, he became skilled enough to form a Rasenshuriken without any shadow clones and throw it in his base form, a feat which he previously could only accomplish while using Sage Mode or Kurama's chakra, which removed the negative side-effect to himself. He also created different-sized variations, and could even use two Rasenshuriken simultaneously. During his reign as Hokage, Naruto became able to use his nature transformations with a single hand seal, able to use Earth Release to quickly create a long stretch and strong stone wall.

Via Six Paths Senjutsu, Naruto can utilise all five nature transformations, as well as Yin–Yang Release. He could make perfect use of the latter to revitalise life-forces, heal whomever he touches, and restore missing organs. With chakra from the tailed beasts, Naruto could also use the kekkei genkai of Shukaku's Magnet Release, Son Gokū's Lava Release, and Kokuō's Boil Release.

Senjutsu

Naruto's Sage Mode.

After Jiraiya's death, Naruto was trained in senjutsu at Mount Myōboku, requiring his high chakra reserves. Unlike Jiraiya, he was able to perfectly balance natural energy with his chakra, and enter Sage Mode, symbolised by the orange pigmentation around his eyes. Using Sage Mode made Naruto's techniques stronger, enhanced his physical parameters, and allowed him to utilise the Frog Kata taijutsu style. Since Fukasaku was unable to fuse with Naruto and gather natural energy for him (due to Kurama's interference), Naruto had to employ shadow clones instead to maintain the technique. Once they disperse, the natural energy they absorb would transfer to the original, allowing him to use Sage Mode for a number of times. However, creating more than five shadow clones overall would disrupt the focus of the clones gathering natural energy. The need for this method diminishes over time as Naruto became capable of entering Sage Mode much faster.

Naruto learned how to combine Sage Mode with Kurama's chakra to further enhance his abilities, such that he could resist Nagato's control and shatter Truth-Seeking Balls.

Six Paths Sage Mode

Naruto's Six Paths Sage Mode.

With the power given to him by Hagoromo, Naruto gained access to the Six Paths Sage Mode (六道仙人モード, Rikudō Sennin Mōdo). In this mode, his eyes become yellow and his pupils take on a cross-like shape — without manifesting the orange pigmentation around his eyes present in Sage Mode. Naruto could also don a new chakra cloak, similar to Nine-Tails Chakra Mode, which he could access instantly and maintain much longer than Sage Mode. Naruto's Six Paths Sage Mode cloak changed several times throughout his later years. Naruto's physical attributes and techniques are further augmented, to the point where he could dodge attacks at the speed of light. The mode granted him flight and immunity from Truth-Seeking Balls.

Naruto also manifested nine Truth-Seeking Balls, composed of all five basic natures, Yin–Yang Release, and Six Paths Sage Chakra. He could mould the balls into staves and platforms, fire them as projectiles, convert them into Tailed Beast Balls to create Tailed Beast Ball Rasenshuriken, or transfer them to his shadow clones. Naruto also retained use of his Tailed Beast Mode avatar of Kurama, which rivalled Sasuke's Complete Body — Susanoo in size and power. Using shadow clones, he could create and combine three Kurama avatars into a single construct with three faces and six arms, similar to Asura's. This state allowed Naruto to infuse two massive Rasenshuriken with natural energy.

Intelligence

Naruto reveals himself after disguising as a Wind Release: Rasenshuriken.

While headstrong and often acting without thinking, Naruto's years as a prankster had given him a cunning imagination that was useful in battle. He was a remarkable tactile learner, able to learn better through executing a task rather than understanding the theory of it. Once they see him in action, even the likes of the Second Hokage revise their thoughts about Naruto's intellect and instinct in battle. After meeting Hagoromo, Naruto gained the innate ability to grasp the nature of chakra and comprehend all universal things, allowing him to quickly master the new powers he received. By adulthood he had became a capable teacher during the blank period, instructing students at Konoha's Ninja Academy and training them to become ninja.

Naruto's most famous mental skill lies in his ability to deceive his opponents, as he made effective use of even the most simple techniques to trick the deadliest of opponents. He could formulate multi-step plans or backup plans in the thick of battle, and act quickly even when given new information. His strategies typically involved shadow clones. He could direct his opponent's attentions towards one of his clones to disguise his own movements, transform his clones into objects or other individuals for surprise attacks, and could seemingly make himself predictable by creating a pattern, only to throw off his opponent by breaking it. He has even thrown in what others would call random, completely useless supplementary techniques at powerful opponents and successfully created a decent opening for a counterattack. Naruto is rather observant, able to notice details others may overlook and subsequently take advantage of them to overcome his opponents.

New Era

Shortly after their marriage, Naruto and Hinata had a son named Boruto, and two years later a daughter named Himawari. Several years later, Kakashi decided to step down and selected Naruto to be the Seventh Hokage. On the day of his inauguration, Boruto accidentally destroyed Himawari's toy, leading to Naruto stepping in to defend his son from Himawari's Gentle Fist-strike, but ended up taking the blow instead, rendering him unconscious. He ended up missing his own inauguration, forcing Konohamaru to impersonate him during the ceremony. As Hokage, he hosted a Kage Summit in Konoha, in which Sasuke reported that a threat greater than Kaguya may still exist somewhere, which Naruto and the other Kage decided to keep the information between themselves to avoid causing a panic.

Academy Arc

In the anime, Naruto partakes in the entrance ceremony at the Academy, which leads to him being mortified after Boruto arrives and damages the Hokage Rock. After the incident, Naruto learns from the Kaminarimon Company president that Boruto is having a positive impact on his son, leading to Naruto smiling. Later, as a mysterious presence continues to cause people in the village to randomly attack the citizens, Naruto decides to begin an investigation, which uncovers that victims are having their chakra severely drained to the point of hospitalisation.

As the mysterious attack began to happen throughout the village, Naruto's efforts to uncover the truth began to exhaust him and being insisted by Shikamaru to go home and rest. Upon arriving, he learned that Boruto was acting very strange recently. Once confronting his son about his new attitude, Boruto insisted that he had finally manifested his Byakugan, leading them to talk to Hiashi. Upon arriving at his household, Hiashi like Naruto had doubts that Boruto awakened the Byakugan. Deciding to test Boruto, Hanabi faces Boruto, which concluded that Boruto hadn't manifested the dōjutsu. Afterwards, Naruto talked with Hiashi about his grandchildren.

After assigning Sai to investigate the attacks in the village, he returned home late, and confided in Hinata about his ineptitude in interacting with his children, believing it to stem from his growing up without parents.[45] Some time later, Naruto saved civilians at the Konoha Purification Plant. As Boruto decided to check on his hospitalised friends, realising that his son was conducting his own investigation on the attacks, Naruto dragged Boruto to the surgery room, showing his son what was becoming of the victims of prolonged rampages. While hoping to sway Boruto into staying out of this matter, it only strengthened Boruto's resolve. Shino then appeared, encouraging Naruto to have faith in his son as the teacher himself was recently saved by Boruto's efforts. While still weary, Naruto decided to trust Shino's judgement.

While having dinner with his family and Mitsuki, Naruto abruptly departs to handle a matter involving strange chakra spreading across Konoha.[139] Soon after, Sai discovered that the culprit behind these attacks was Sumire Kakei. Naruto learned from Kakashi that Sumire's intention was to unleash the Gozu Tennō on the village. Later, when Sai found Sumire, she unleashed the Nue. Naruto soon joined the unit to fend off the creature, but Kakashi warned Naruto to not get close, having realised that the endgame of this creature was to amass enough chakra to produce a powerful enough explosion to destroy the village. While the barrier team worked to keep the creature at bay, it suddenly teleported away. As Naruto attempted to find the creature with Sage Mode, Kakashi deduced that the creature worked differently from normal summonings, existing naturally in its own separate dimension.

Upon Sumire turning herself in, Sai and Shikamaru notifies him that it's due to Boruto appealing to Sumire's genuine love of her friends in the Academy, making Naruto relieved that decided to admit her in the first place. Later, he informs Boruto that while he must look to the welfare of the entire village and does not have absolute say, he promises to help Sumire. Ultimately, it was decided to pardon Sumire and let her return to the Academy. Later, Naruto sent a clone to meet up with Sasuke, giving him the research on the Gozu Tennō. Sasuke quickly deduced that this was an attempt on Danzō to recreate Kaguya's technique. Before Sasuke departs, he asks Naruto to apologise to Sakura for his continued absence, leading to Naruto feeling responsible for.[140]

When Himawari became sick due to a fever, Naruto hurried home worried about her in which Boruto pointed out that his Hokage cloak is inside out. When Naruto and Boruto began fighting over what Himawari should eat, Hinata became angry and kicked them both out of the house due to them being noisy. Naruto then invited Boruto to eat with him at Ramen Ichiraku to try to bond with him in which he accepted. As they ate, Naruto told his son about all the precious memories he had in the shop, such as being acknowledged by Iruka, hanging out with Team 7, and going on his first date with Hinata.[141]

Sarada Uchiha Arc

On the day of the Five Kage Summit in Konoha, Moegi and Udon notify Naruto that Boruto had vandalised the Hokage Rock. Before Boruto could do any more damage, Naruto catches and stops him. Afterwards, he gives his son a lecture about how the whole village is his family. The ordeal leads to Naruto arriving late to the kage meeting, which he apologies for.

As Boruto's graduation exam from the Academy was approaching, Naruto used a shadow clone to help him train. Meanwhile, the real Naruto received a report from Sasuke about a boy with the Sharingan. After he consulted with Kakashi about it, Naruto decided to accompany Sasuke to a meeting with Orochimaru, leaving behind a shadow clone to manage Konoha in his absence. He made a point to leave the village before Boruto could come to see him off, though he asked Shikamaru to apologise to Boruto on his behalf.

While on his way to the rendezvous point, Naruto sensed that he was being followed by Sarada Uchiha and Chōchō Akimichi. He initially tried to ignore them, but eventually decided it would be better to confront them than to let them continue coming after him. When he arrived to speak with them, however, he found them being attacked by the same boy from Sasuke's report. Although he was pleased that they were able to hold their own against their attacker, Naruto decided to get personally involved when he saw the boy had a Mangekyō Sharingan. The boy could do nothing against Naruto's Nine-Tails Chakra Mode, so he fled with a creature's space–time ninjutsu. Because the boy was apparently after Sarada, Naruto allowed them to come with him so that he could keep them safe.

While having lunch, Naruto told Sarada about what her father was like growing up and then informed both Sarada and and Chōchō in what ways they take after their parents. Sarada was not only interested to hear about Sasuke, but also found she got along quite well with Naruto. As they got close to where they were supposed to meet up with Sasuke, Sarada snuck away from Naruto and Chōchō so that she could see him first. Naruto followed and, on arrival, was reprimanded by Sasuke for bringing children with him. Sarada explained that she came without permission as she wanted to know if Sakura was her real mother. Sasuke ignored the question, which only upset her and caused her to storm out. Naruto tried to comfort her, but his assurances that Sasuke meant well did not improve her mood. Before he could continue, he sensed the boy's return and defended Sarada as the boy and his father, Shin Uchiha, attack.

Sasuke assisted in fighting off Shin and his son, but Shin was able to manipulate Sasuke's sword and used it to stab Naruto. Naruto continued attacking Shin despite his injury, though tried to use being impaled by the sword to win sympathy; Kurama ridiculed Naruto for allowing himself to be stabbed at all, but assured him that it wouldn't kill him. Sakura suddenly arrived to lend assistance and landed a fatal blow on Shin, forcing Shin to escape and took Sakura with him. Unable to detect where Shin had taken Sakura, they continued to Orochimaru's lair. Orochimaru informed them that Shin was an old experiment of his that he since lost control of. Naruto noticed Sarada sneaking off with Suigetsu during Orochimaru's explanation and followed them, listening in as Suigetsu ran a DNA test that suggested Sarada's real mother was actually Karin.

Not knowing what the truth was, Naruto was upset first with Sasuke for the secret he has seemingly been keeping, but also with Suigetsu for getting involved. He approached Sarada to discuss it with her, but she lashed out at him, believing he had been a knowing participant in the lie that Sakura was her mother. When she tried to insist that having no blood relation to Sakura meant they weren't family, Naruto took a firm stance: he wasn't related to most of Konoha's villagers, yet he still considered them his family because they were important to him. In the same way, Sakura and Sarada were family because they were important to each other. Sarada realised how much she loved Sakura and decided she wanted to help rescue her. They reunited with the others and head out for shin's hideout.

Using Sasuke's Rinnegan, they were able to reach where Shin took Sakura, only to find Sakura faring fine on her own fighting him. With the numbers against him growing, Shin called in his sons (actually his clones) to assist, but they turned against him and killed him because Using Sasuke's Rinnegan, they were able to reach where Shin took Sakura, only to find Sakura faring fine on her own fighting him. With the numbers against him growing, Shin called in his sons (actually his clones) to assist, but they turned against him and killed him because he always mistreated them. The clones then turned their attentions to Naruto and the others, which Naruto engaged with his own shadow clones. Because they were only children, he frightened them into surrendering by manifesting Kurama. After learning that Sakura indeed was her biological mother, Sarada reconciled with her parents, much to Naruto's happiness. Then, they all returned to Konoha, with Shin's clones being delivered to the Konoha Orphanage.

Field Trip Arc

In the anime, to improve relationships with other villages and symbolically show the warring era was over, Naruto set up an official class trip for the Academy to go to Kirigakure. Working out the details with Chōjūrō, he also got a tour guide for the class.

Versus Momoshiki Arc

Several months later, Naruto remained busy with his Hokage duties and continued having a strained relationship with his son, Boruto. Konoha has grown into a large city under Naruto's leadership, although Naruto is overwhelmed with the responsibilities of being Hokage, leading him to create shadow clones to tend to his family and the villagers. When Boruto and his team report to Naruto after a mission, Naruto asked his son to address him as "the Seventh" instead of "Dad," and reminded him the importance of teamwork, which annoyed his son, as he believed that he could handle anything on his own. Boruto warned his father to be home for Himawari's birthday party or else he will never forgive him. Katasuke Tōno then entered his office, requesting permission from Naruto to allow participants of the upcoming Chūnin Exams to use his new invention, the Kote. However Naruto refused on the grounds that it did not show one's true abilities a shinobi. Naruto was unable to make it to his daughter's birthday party and sent a shadow clone instead. However, the clone ended up disappearing and dropping the cake when Naruto became fatigued, which enraged Boruto and caused him to throw Naruto's old, tattered jacket out the window. Naruto felt guilty for letting his family down and Shikamaru told him to go home and rest. The jacket was found by Sasuke, who returned to Konoha to ask for help in deciphering a scroll he found in Kaguya's abandoned castle. They met in Naruto's office where Sasuke mentioned his meeting with Boruto and this leads to them making a bet on whether the nature of a shinobi has changed in regards to Boruto, to which Sasuke says it hasn't and Naruto says it has.

Naruto wasn't surprised when Boruto won the first test but after being advised by Shikamaru to reach out to Boruto, Naruto congratulated him via email, much to Boruto's annoyance. While the scroll was being deciphered, Naruto sent a clone to meet up with Sasuke and asked him if it was true that he was training Boruto. Naruto said that perhaps Sasuke was right concerning the nature of shinobi remaining the same, to which Sasuke agrees. Naruto was nervous on the outcome of the second test but after learning Boruto passed, Naruto was overjoyed. Later, he met with Boruto in his bedroom and personally congratulated him and told him not to lose against Shikadai. Naruto offered a fist bump, but Boruto only smiled as he didn't want his father to discover the Kote he was wearing. For the third test, Naruto chose to sit with Hinata and Himawari rather than with the other Kage as they watched Boruto fight in the third round and finally against Shikadai Nara. Near the end, Naruto suspected something was wrong after it appeared Boruto won. He asked Hinata to use her Byakugan and she noticed Boruto wearing a Kote. Naruto then realised that Boruto used a Kote to produce several shadow clones in order to win the battle. Disappointed, Naruto confronted him in the arena, ordered that Shikadai be declared as the winner and took Boruto's forehead protector from him. He told Boruto they would talk about this at home, but Boruto lashed out at him that Naruto doesn't know how give him a lecture when he's never home.

Suddenly, Momoshiki and Kinshiki Ōtsutsuki appear and began attacking the arena. Naruto is knocked out of the arena by Momoshiki but he rushes back to defend his son when he is in danger and is shortly joined by Sasuke and Sarada. Sasuke informed Naruto that the two enemies are the new threat written about in the scroll. Naruto realises he is their target and demands to know what they want. After Momoshiki reveals he wanted Kaguya's chakra, and eventually Kurama's from the Seventh Hokage, Naruto and Sasuke combine Kurama and Susanoo to shield themselves and their children from the enemies' attacks. Naruto also dispatches shadow clones to protect civilians that hadn't managed to flee from the arena. Determined to protect his son and friends, Naruto ultimately decides to allow himself to be captured in Momoshiki's jutsu and asks Sasuke to take care of Boruto for him. Just before Naruto disappears, he looks over his shoulder and offers his son one last smile. Naruto was teleported to another dimension and bound by Momoshiki and Kinshiki to a God Tree. Naruto resisted as Momoshiki attempted to extract Kurama from inside Naruto. During the ordeal, sasuke, Boruto, and the other Kage arrived to rescue him.

Naruto, surprised to see Boruto wearing his old jacket, told his son that it was like looking at one of his shadow clones. When he tried to apologise to Boruto for not being there for him, Boruto replied that it was alright and he just wants to hear more about Naruto's past. After the other Kage failed to defeat Kinshiki, and the latter was absorbed by Momoshiki, Naruto and Sasuke joined forces to fight him and initially gained the upper hand until Naruto was briefly imprisoned by boulders and Sasuke was severely burned by Momoshiki's Lava Release. Naruto became enraged upon seeing Sasuke injured but was relieved to find he was all right and still able to fight after being healed by Kurama's chakra. By once again combining Kurama and Susanoo, they managed to defeat Momoshiki and cut his lava creature in half, but Katasuke rushed in and began firing ninjutsu attacks from his Kote at Momoshiki, which he absorbed and used to attack Naruto and the others. Naruto is restrained by black rods while Momoshiki prepares to eliminate the rest of the Kage. When Boruto used his Vanishing Rasengan against Momoshiki to free his father and the other Kage, Naruto was greatly surprised to find that his son was able to use the Rasengan. As they prepare their final assault, Naruto helps Boruto to create a Parent and Child Rasengan, which Boruto himself unleashes upon Momoshiki and Ultimately Kills him.

After the battle ends, Naruto sits with Sasuke and Naruto agrees Sasuke won their bet. Naruto proudly looked on at his son and stated that he would always be there to watch Boruto grow as his father. After returning home, Naruto posed for a photograph with Boruto, Sasuke, and the four other Kage. One morning, as Boruto left to meet with his team and Naruto left to go to work, both wished each other to do their best and bumped fists with each other. While Boruto was giving a live interview on Konoha TV, Naruto watches it from his desk.

Mujina Bandits Arc

After the attack, Naruto discusses Katasuke being under mind control with Sai and Ibiki, and has them continue their investigation while Shikamaru handles Katasuki. Afterwards, Mirai Sarutobi informs Naruto that Team Konohamaru successfully captured the Mujina Bandits, much to his joy. As Shojoji is discussed, Naruto tells everyone that they have to hurry up and handle the missing-nin. Shikamaru then informs Naruto of his upcoming meeting with the Fire Daimyō Ikkyū Madoka, which Naruto had forgot was later during the day.

Ao Arc

Sometime later, Naruto joins his son in a sparring match at the Training Hall, to test out Katasuke's new invention that was fitted on his arm. During the match, Naruto defendshimself from Boruto, and uses the invention to absorb his son's techniques, before defeating him with a single kick. Afterwards at the Hokage's office, Naruto informs Boruto of the technology he used against him, which angered Boruto. Before Naruto could explain himself, Sasuke arrives and interrupts their conversation.

Creation and Conception

Design

Early sketches of Naruto.

Naruto's wardrobe is based off of clothing Kishimoto wore when he was younger. According to him, using a pre-existing design would not have made Naruto unique, whereas something original would make him stand out too much. The orange coloring of his costume is used to make Naruto "pop", with blues often being used to complement the orange. Because Naruto is associated with spirals, swirl patterns are incorporated into his costume. Initial illustrations of Naruto had him wearing boots, but Kishimoto substituted these for sandals, because he likes drawing toes. The googles that Naruto used to wear were also replaced with a forehead protector, because the googles themselves were too time-consuming to draw. Kishimoto said that he felt glad that his character had blond hair and blue eyes, something rarely seen in Japanese anime or manga. The editor of Shonen Jump in the United States added that Kishimoto implied that the traits my have led the character to appeal to a Western audience. When designing Naruto for his Part II appearance, Kishimoto changed his character's clothing to an orange and black top, orange pants, and black sandals. He also gave him a red cape with black flames at the bottom when fighting Pain. He drew Naruto's forehead protector wider to make his eyebrows easier to draw, something that had bothered him with his previous design. He also noted that Naruto's pants made the character look too childish. To remedy this, Kishimoto designed them to roll up, giving him a more mature appearance. He gave Naruto this look in order to make him stand out during action scenes.